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Soldiers • May 2009 39 the prosthetics lab, where fittings for artificial limbs are created and adjusted to give the patient optimal movement and comfort. Pairs of prosthetic legs lie abandoned in corners and against walls. The faint scent of plaster wafts in from the workshop next door. Shar and Carroll check the socket that connects the prosthetic to his thigh, looking for the place where adjustment is needed. A C-leg is a prosthetic for above- the-knee amputees that combines microprocessors, sensors and hydraulics to allow amputees to walk. Carroll said the evolution in prosthetics that brought patients from wooden legs to the alloy prosthetics of today is due to new materials. For example, “carbon fiber as a material is flexible enough to duplicate ankle motion without bum- pers and moving parts.” Carroll said older technology, like the Solid Ankle Cushioned Heel foot, could not store energy and help the patient walk. “When (the C-leg) is compressed and returns to its normal shape, it will give propulsion to hope- fully duplicate some of the muscle activity the patient has lost.” The Military Advanced Training Center is a recent addition to Walter Reed. The 31,000 square-foot reha- bilitation center opened in September 2007. It has cutting-edge technologies like computer and video monitoring systems and simulation rooms. There, servicemembers at different stages of recovery, most missing part of one or both legs, are learning to walk again. Cristin Loeffler, a MATC physical therapist, ties an elastic band around Shar’s thighs. He walks crab-like, hold- ing onto the rail of the oval track that dominates the second floor of the $8.9 million facility. The bands increase the tension on the muscles around his hips. Shar takes a step with his left leg, the band stretches taut, then he closes the stride with his right. After traveling halfway around the track, he switches directions and returns to the starting point, working out the opposite hip. Shar says, “She works me hard.” They are working on his hip, thigh and gluteus muscles using an exercise called resisted abduction. “I waddle a lot, so we’re trying to get the core muscles stronger,” Shar explains. “I’m making a lot of progress, ever since I had (Loeffler) for a therapist. She’s been busting me hard, so I’m doing a lot better.” Loeffler agrees Shar is making good progress. “I started working with him in July and he’s gotten away from car- rying a cane. He went from two canes, to one cane, to no cane.” After more exercises, Shar tells Loeffler he has to leave for an appoint- ment with his primary care physician. Loeffler objects. “I’ve got you five more minutes,” she says. “I’ll come back,” Shar promises. Servicemembers injured before the days of infrared, camera-assisted mo- tion analysis and treadmills that mimic (Left photo) Chief of Staff of the Army Gen. George W. Casey Jr. writes a message on Maj. Joesph Claburn’s airborne banner at Walter Reed, Nov. 11, 2008. (Right photo) An occupational therapist works with a patient at Walter Reed in 1959. National Archives National Archives An Army nurse assists a patient in the Physical Reconditioning section in 1946. 39 Soldiers • May 2009